What the Hell is Bill Hunt Doing Asking for Joe Arpaio's Support?!

Honestly, I always felt bad for Bill Hunt, the former Orange County deputy sheriff who's running against incumbent Sandra Hutchens next year. He loudly spoke against the moron Mike Carona, only to suffer an insult so egregious--demotion to patrolling Stanton--that he rightfully resigned. The lords of the OC GOP always ridiculed him, and nearly anything they're against is righteous and holy. But there is no way on Earth I can possibly say anything nice about Hunt anymore until I receive some clarification: either the guy is an ignoramus maximus, or so desperate for support he's willing to deal with Lucifer himself.

On November 5, none other than Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio will slime his way to O.C. to raise money for Hunt. Does Hunt suffer from Stockholm Syndrome? The only sheriff worse than Carona ever elected to office is Arpaio, the man Hunt gushingly calls Arpaio "America's Toughest Sheriff" in fundraiser invites. Did you do any research on him, Bill? Do you know that, by seeking Arpaio's endorsement, you've just alienated nearly every Latino voter in Orange County because Arpaio's immigration roundups these past couple of years have terrorized Latinos in the Phoenix area (and don't give me any shit about illegal is illegal, Know Nothings: Maricopa County sheriffs have been more than happy to include American citizens in their raids)? That every reporter loathes Arpaio because his disgust for the First Amendment is such that he jailed my drunk mick bosses for charges so trivial, they were released the next day? That inmate deaths and beatings in the Maricopa County have been so frequent, they make Orange County jails seem like Club Fed?

But here's the best part, Bill: You claim to be a true conservative, so how can a good GOPer support a public official who has cost taxpayers over $40 million for his lax oversight of the jails?

But you don't have to take my word for it. Just read the archives of the

"I can only assume that such a candidate is a reactionary, hoping to appeal to an equally reactionary electorate with the 'myth' of Joe Arpaio as a tough-as-nails crime fighter," Lemons told the Weekly, speaking about Hunt. "Problem with that is, Arpaio's regime is corrupt, spendthrift and under investigation by federal and state agencies. By appearing on the same stage as Arpaio, a candidate creates a 200 pound, geriatric albatross that he or she will one day wish had been avoided."

Gustavo Arellano is the editor of OC Weekly, author of the syndicated column "¡Ask a Mexican!", and Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America. He started at the paper with an angry, fake letter to the editor and went from there—only in Anacrime!